Today we’d like to introduce you to Addison Shockley
Hi Addison, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My wife and I (Lydia Shockley is my wife, and myself being Addison Shockley) as co-CEOs and co-founders embarked on a journey to create Ready for Good in late 2021, out of a shared passion for supporting at-risk youth and helping them carve pathways to brighter futures. Having lived through serving youth in foster care in a residential setting, we carried a deep understanding of the challenges these young people face. Together, we envisioned an organization that would not only provide work opportunities but also offer mentorship, life skills, and the kind of personal investment that can make all the difference in a young person’s life.
Our nonprofit furniture store, Ready for Good Furnishings, launched in April 2022, and began as a bold idea: a nonprofit social enterprise model focused on supportive employment aimed at teaching job skills as well as a playful environment where youth could connect to trusted adults and have fun. The concept also included the value of reuse and repair—an inventory approach that includes items needing repair and assembly, mirroring the mission of building up youth and giving youth a second chance at success. By blending work experience, soft skills development, and on-the-job training in retail skills, furniture assembly, and furniture repair, Ready for Good quickly became a safe and empowering space for opportunity youth, especially those aging out of foster care or disconnected from work and education, but also youth with experience in the juvenile justice system. Often youth in one system have experience in the other, so they’re like sister systems.
Building the organization wasn’t easy. My wife and I juggled countless roles, from managing day-to-day business operations to creating lessons for youth in life and job skills; from entering transactions into QuickBooks to navigating the complexities of nonprofit compliance. At the same time, we worked to expand our services—always working to improve existing and craft new programs that prepared youth for living-wage jobs but also gave them tools to succeed in life.
Through our shared leadership, we fostered a culture of innovation and teamwork, balancing our different decision-making styles to drive the organization forward. Lydia brought a focus on artistry and hospitality, with a focus on building meaningful relationships, while Addison approached challenges with a commitment to clarity and structured problem-solving. Together, we learned the importance of slowing down, getting on the same page before making significant decisions, and leaning on each other’s strengths while seeking support from trusted advisors.
As Ready for Good grew, we’ve remained dedicated to creating opportunities for young people. Our furniture store became more than a retail space—it became a hub for skill-building, personal growth, and community impact. Today, Ready for Good is a testament to God’s blessing on, and empowerment of, a vision that came from Him and our following through with it, with hard work. With His guidance and power, we’ve built a place where at-risk youth are supported, trained, and inspired to envision a successful future. Whether through learning to assemble furniture, managing inventory, or refining customer service skills, every youth who walks through our doors is given a chance to grow in confidence and capability. And with each piece of furniture sold, we’ve proven that good business and good deeds can go hand in hand.
This story isn’t just about how we started—it’s about where we’re going. We continue to dream big, working on initiatives like being able to sell products to people around the country through our website (and being able to ship products there), crafting effective educational resources for youth in these situations elsewhere, and embarking on new projects like selling and repairing appliances, adding a coffee cart to our store that provides barista skills training, and adding a career-level opportunity in sewer scope inspection training, as the overwhelming majority of youth we serve will never finish college and need vocational skills that open up living wages for them and their family. Every new step brings us closer to our ultimate goal: transforming lives and creating a legacy of hope and opportunity for youth at the fringes of this generation.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It hasn’t been a smooth road, but the challenges along the way have shaped Ready for Good into what it is today. Building a nonprofit from the ground up, especially one focused on at-risk youth, required navigating both logistical and emotional hurdles.
One of the biggest struggles was gaining the trust of the youth you serve. Many come from backgrounds where stability and support were lacking, so creating a safe, welcoming environment that encouraged growth and connection took time and effort. You also had to develop a program that balanced teaching hard skills like furniture assembly and repair and retail work with the softer, yet equally critical, skills of communication, teamwork, and resilience.
On the operational side, there were countless moving parts to manage—keeping track of finances, implementing new systems, and ensuring compliance with nonprofit regulations. With limited resources, we often had to wear multiple hats, from handling bookkeeping to making deposits, training employees, and running the store itself. Adding to that, maintaining momentum while applying for grants, seeking corporate sponsorships, and growing our reach was a continual uphill climb.
That said, so many people were encouraging and helpful along the way. Help with starting the furniture store aspect was provided by my family, particularly my older brother Caleb Shockley and parents Michael and Mary, but also my younger brother, Maxwell, who had started and run Mary Margaret’s Home Store in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, the business model we essentially adopted and adapted. If they had not imagined, started, and run that store for so many years before we existed, we might never have started Ready for Good, as we wouldn’t have had a business model to begin with.
Perhaps one of the most profound struggles has been managing the emotional weight of the work. Seeing the barriers these young people face—be it developmental delays, lack of family support, or systemic challenges—can be heartbreaking. But these struggles also fueled our determination to create real, lasting change in their lives. We’ve come to believe that the small things are big things – what people do for others doesn’t have to be fancy to be impactful. Creating an environment where young people who’ve been neglected can be recognized and seen; where young men and women who’ve stagnated in certain systems can finally feel like they’re breaking free into progress; where those who have lost trust can experience another place marked by safety and kindness; and where learning to use basic tools might increase one’s confidence in other areas of life.
Despite the many obstacles, past and present, we have always found a way forward. Every setback has been an opportunity to adapt, innovate, and grow stronger. With strong desire to see these youth ministered to – given hope, given more confidence, given joy – we’ve turned these challenges into stepping stones toward a future we keep believing in, that is worth working hard for now and for years to come.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
For Addison, one of my favorite ways to connect with the youth we serve is through humor. Whether it’s cracking jokes, pulling a silly prank, or showing off a magic trick, I love finding ways to entertain and keep them engaged. Laughter breaks down walls and helps create a space where learning feels fun and welcoming. Sometimes, a well-timed joke or lighthearted moment is all it takes to turn a tough day around.
I’m also deeply passionate about teaching life and job skills. I earned a PhD in Communication, which means I have a real love for words and how they shape our understanding of the world. I use that passion to help youth build the soft skills they need to succeed—like how to communicate effectively, collaborate on a team, or navigate conflict constructively. It’s incredibly rewarding to see those skills click for someone and watch their confidence grow.
At the same time, I really enjoy practical, hands-on work. I have a knack for cool tools, creative problem-solving, and finding smart ways to make or fix things. I’m the guy who’s subscribed to newsletters like Cool Tools and watches YouTube channels like Essential Craftsman for inspiration. Whether it’s figuring out how to repair a piece of furniture or showing someone how to use a new tool, I love the challenge of making things work better.
Before starting Ready for Good, I worked at a foster care facility for five years. During that time, I learned so much about the lived experience of youth in foster care—how they’re often bored, how their activities are restricted, and how many would love a job but feel it’s out of reach. These insights shaped the foundation of what we do. We created a program that’s responsive to those experiences, one that addresses not just one area but many: the need to connect, to feel alive, to find hope, and to learn new skills that build confidence.
What sets me apart is that I bring all these elements together—humor, teaching, and practicality—into an environment designed to meet youth where they are and give them a space to grow. I’m most proud of the moments when I see a young person light up with pride because they accomplished something they didn’t think they could do. Those moments remind me why I do what I do and drive my passion for helping at-risk youth find their footing and their futures.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Addison’s response: What matters most to me is helping those who feel “less-than” to discover that they are and have always been “equal-to.” I want the youth we work with to feel the weight of their true dignity and worth. Every person deserves to know that they are valuable—not because of what they can do, but because of who they are. Helping someone recognize their own inherent value is one of the most meaningful parts of my work. Many youth we work with have so much self-hatred and shame, due to things that have happened that aren’t even their fault, but which they’ve taken as their failures or responsibility. “If I had only done X, then maybe Y wouldn’t have happened. Maybe my mom or dad would still be Z. Maybe we’d still be together.” We have to help youth unburden themselves of burdens that are so heavy they’re being crushed by them, and help the youth put those burdens on the shoulders of someone who can carry them, while also helping the youth to understand that they can and must feel sad and not shut their emotions off to what’s happened in their lives, because it is sad; and yet, there is still hope for the future.
I also care deeply about helping people learn paths in life that lead to goodness, fruitfulness, peace, and joy. Jesus and the church are my basic foundation for life, work, purpose and fulfillment—and I share that oftentimes, even if in small ways, for youth in our programs- yet I know that not all youth are open to engaging with faith right now, for various reasons. I am an ambassador for Christ, meaning I try to represent him and invite young people into a relationship with Him if they so choose, but our program is not a religious program, and conversations about faith are more spontaneous and not baked into the formal program. They happen sometimes as we get to know youth and share our lives with them, while we work together. So, the emphasis is always on practical teaching of life and job skills, fostering an environment of empathy and connection, and helping young people build a foundation for meaningful work and relationships, no matter what personal or professional direction they choose.
Another thing that matters to me is showing people the value of work—not just as a means to an end, but as a place to connect with others and oneself. Work shouldn’t just be drudgery; it can be meaningful, and it can even be fun. I love finding ways to integrate playfulness into work—whether it’s through humor, pranks, or turning a task into a creative challenge. Seeing someone realize they can enjoy the process, not just the outcome, is incredibly rewarding.
That said, work-life integration is just as important to me. The mission of our nonprofit can feel all-consuming at times, but I know I have more than one mission in life. One of my most important callings is to be a great dad, beloved husband, and a healthy individual. If I allow my personal health or my role as a parent to get sidelined in pursuit of Ready for Good’s goals, I know my ability to fulfill this mission over the long term will suffer. So I intentionally strive for all these missions at the same time—taking care of myself and investing in my wife and kids so I can sustain this work and continue giving my best to those who depend on it. Sometimes our kids come to work with us; sometimes Lydia and I go on a date and then go to the store to help out with something small there; sometimes we turn our phones off, take the kids and leave for a few days, because we need some space and a break. It’s these rhythms of work and rest, of engagement and disengagement, that help us to stay restored and replenished for a lifetime’s worth of work.
Ultimately, the belief that life is meant to be lived fully–in relationships, in work, and in the pursuit of God’s kingdom–is my driver. I want a full cup, and I want it to run over to bless others. The Bible talks about being blessed in order to bless others. Helping others find their way to this fullness, especially those who have felt overlooked or undervalued, is at the heart of everything I do. The world may leave people on the outskirts, but we go to the edge and bring the center to them.
Pricing:
- readyforgoodks.org has lots of items for sale, at various prices
- we carry indoor, outdoor, all categories of furniture and home goods, even appliances now
Contact Info:
- Website: https://readyforgoodks.org
- Instagram: @readyforgoodco
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/readyforgood.co
